So, we've been eating out a lot lately. Since I've started my new business, it seems that I have had absolutely no time to feed my family. Instead, I've been paying strangers to do it.

There are a lot of family restaurants in the area, but I have a couple of favorites. The first is McDonald's. I really only like it because I can drive through and bring the food home. Then I can pretend that I cooked (even if I don't have a deep fryer - the kids don't have to know that), and I don't have to worry about tipping.

Perkins is a another good choice for us. The kids eat only one thing - Rainbow pancakes. They get messy with all the syrup, and not a dinnertime at Perkins goes by without Patrick choking on a piece of bacon, but at least they're happy. And they give me free crackers for Johnny, so that's a plus.

We eat at Pauly's, too. The only problem there is that it can get smoky. I don't like the combination french fry/cigarette smell I tend to come home with after we've eaten at Pauly's on the weekends. Again, the kids always order the same thing here: mini corn dogs. But then they make me peel off the "corn," leaving just mini hot dogs. I've tried to explain that the "corn" part is the "best" part, but my children are excruitiatingly stubborn.

I am looking forward to Ruby Tuesday. They have a salad bar, which is nice. Maybe I can train Johnny to eat salad, rather than the junk his siblings ingest. At the very least, I can overindulge in the salad bar and not feel guilty when I leave.

I'll update this when I get to the new Arby's, too. Mmmmmm..... Roast Beef......